Surface Forces Archives - Page 225 of 248

Report to Congress on U.S. Navy Ship Names

5 March 2019

The following is the Feb. 28, 2019 Congressional Research Service report, Navy Ship Names: Background for Congress.

From the Report

Names for Navy ships traditionally have been chosen and announced by the Secretary of the Navy, under the direction of the President and in accordance with rules prescribed by Congress. Rules for giving certain types of names to certain types of Navy ships have evolved over time. There have been exceptions to the Navy’s ship-naming rules, particularly for the purpose...

https://news.usni.org/2019/03/05/report-congress-u-s-navy-ship-names-4

Pacific Partnership 2019 Puts Expeditionary Fast Transports in the Role of Command Ships

4 March 2019

Expeditionary fast transport ship USNS Brunswick (T-EPF 6) departs Naval Base Guam, passing the MSC expeditionary fast transport ship USNS Fall River (T-EPF 4) and marking the start of Pacific Partnership 2019. US Navy photo

A pair of expeditionary fast transport ships (EPFs) are playing a key role in this year’s multi-national Pacific Partnership 2019 exercise focused on humanitarian assistance and disaster relief in the region.

The exercise commanders are embarked aboard USNS Brunswick...

https://news.usni.org/2019/03/04/pacific-partnership-2019-starts-using-expeditionary-fast-transports-as-command-ships

USNI News Video: Expeditionary Minehunting Units Growing in Size, Capabilities

4 March 2019

From left to right, Machinist Mate 1st Class Micah Patterson, Boatswains Mate 1st Class Stephen Wodraska, Engineman 2nd Class Richard Meyer, Mineman 1st Class Coy Tully and Mineman 3rd Class Pete Calvert, assigned to Commander, Task Group 56.1, launch a MK 18 MOD 2 unmanned underwater vehicle from a rigid-hull inflatable boat during Squadex 2016 on Aug. 2, 2016. US Navy photo.

SAN DIEGO, Calif. – The Navy is investing in its explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) force, doubling the number of...

https://news.usni.org/2019/03/04/usni-news-video-expeditionary-mcm-companies-growing-in-size-capabilities

USNI News Fleet and Marine Tracker: March 4, 2019

4 March 2019

USNI News Image

These are the approximate positions of the U.S. Navy’s deployed carrier strike groups and amphibious ready groups throughout the world as of March 4, 2019, based on Navy and public data. In cases where a CSG or ARG is conducting disaggregated operations, the chart reflects the location of the capital ship.

Total U.S. Navy Battle Force:290Ships Underway

Deployed Ships Underway	Non-deployed Ships Underway	Total Ships Underway
49	20	69

Ships Deployed by Fleet

Fleet Forces

3^rd

https://news.usni.org/2019/03/04/usni-news-fleet-and-marine-tracker-march-4-2019

Littoral Combat Ship USS Charleston Commissions in South Carolina

3 March 2019

Secretary of the Navy Richard V. Spencer delivers his remarks during the commissioning ceremony of USS Charleston (LCS-18) on March 2, 2019. US Navy Photo

The Littoral Combat Ship USS Charleston (LCS-18) officially joined the fleet during a Saturday commissioning ceremony in downtown Charleston, S.C.

“USS Charleston is proof of what the teamwork of all of our people — civilian, contractor and military — can accomplish together,” Secretary of the Navy Richard V. Spencer said in a statement. “This...

https://news.usni.org/2019/03/03/uss-charleston-join-fleet-saturday-morning

Navy Issues Draft RFP for FFG(X) Next-Generation Frigate

2 March 2019

Artist’s rendering of the Austal USA FFG(X) bid from SNA 2019. Austal USA Image

The Navy has issued a draft request for proposal to design and build its planned class of 20 next-generation guided-missile frigates (FFG(X)).

Posted late Friday, the detailed design and construction RFP draft will serve as a practice run for shipbuilders to pitch their designs for the small surface combatants that are set to follow on the two classes of Littoral Combat Ships currently in production.

The document lays...

https://news.usni.org/2019/03/02/navy-issues-draft-rfp-ffgx-next-generation-frigate

Pentagon Plan to Sideline Carrier Truman Will Net Just $17M in FY 2020

28 February 2019

USS Harry S. Truman (CVN-75) conducts a strait transit. Truman is currently deployed as part of an ongoing rotation of U.S. forces supporting maritime security operations in international waters around the globe on April 27, 2018. US Navy Photo

A Pentagon budget plan to sideline an aircraft carrier rather than refuel it as a means to redirect money for other defense priorities would save just $16.9 million in Fiscal Year 2020, USNI News has learned.

That money in the next fiscal year is the first...

https://news.usni.org/2019/02/28/pentagon-plan-sideline-carrier-truman-will-net-just-17m-fy-2020

13th MEU, Essex ARG Return Home, Ending First F-35B Combat Deployment

28 February 2019

An F-35B Lightning II assigned to Marine Fighter Attack Squadron (VMFA) 211, 13th Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU), moves into position to land aboard the Wasp-class amphibious assault ship USS Essex (LHD 2), Jan. 9, 2019. US Marine Corps photo.

Marines and sailors with the Essex Amphibious Ready Group and 13th Marine Expeditionary Unit flowed off their ships and back home on Thursday, ending an eight-month deployment that included the first-ever combat strikes by the F-35B Joint Strike Fighter.

Am...

https://news.usni.org/2019/02/28/13th-meu-essex-arg-return-home-ending-first-f-35b-combat-deployment

Fleet Forces: Navy Short 6,200 At-Sea Sailors Now to Meet New Manning Requirements

27 February 2019

Sailors attend an all-hands call aboard USS Porter (DDG-78) in celebration of Independence Day July 4, 2016. US Navy Photo

CAPITOL HILL – The Navy is short about 6,200 sailors to meet its at-sea requirements for its current force, and that gap could grow as the service adds new ships to the fleet, the head of U.S. Fleet Forces Command told a House panel on Tuesday.

Those sailors will, in part, be used to plus-up crew numbers on each surface ship after the Navy had previously gone to a...

https://news.usni.org/2019/02/26/fleet-forces-navy-short-6200-at-sea-sailors-now-to-meet-new-manning-requirements

First Marine F-35B Combat Deployment Hints at New Roles for Amphibious Ready Group

27 February 2019

An F-35B Lightning II with Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 211, 13th Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU), prepares to land aboard the Wasp-class amphibious assault ship USS Essex (LHD 2), while another F-35B Lightning II flies over on Dec. 4, 2018. US Marine Corps Photo

After eight months at sea with a squadron of F-35B Lighting II Joint Strike Fighters, the Marines and the Navy are seeing how the next-generation aircraft will expand the effectiveness of U.S. amphibious forces.

The Essex Amphibious...

https://news.usni.org/2019/02/27/first-marine-f-35b-combat-deployment-hints-at-new-roles-for-amphibious-ready-group

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